baptism of fire

American  

noun

1. spiritual sanctification as a gift of the Holy Ghost.

2. the first time a soldier faces battle.

3. any severe ordeal that tests one's endurance.

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baptism of fire British  

noun

1. a soldier's first experience of battle

2. any initiating ordeal or experience

3. Christianity the penetration of the Holy Ghost into the human spirit to purify, consecrate, and strengthen it, as was believed to have occurred initially at Pentecost

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baptism of fire Idioms  

1. A severe ordeal or test, especially an initial one, as in This audition would be Robert's baptism of fire. This term transfers the original religious rite of baptism, whereby holiness is imparted, to various kinds of ordeal. At first it signified the death of martyrs at the stake, and in 19th-century France it was used for a soldier's first experience of combat. Currently it is used more loosely for any difficult first encounter.

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Etymology

Origin of baptism of fire

First recorded in 1815–25

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

baptism of fire

Balfe: It was a bit of a baptism of fire.

From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 6, 2026

French ice dancers Guillaume Cizeron and Laurence Fournier Beaudry are poised to win Olympic gold in Milan despite a baptism of fire in their debut season with accusations of control and manipulation flying.

From Barron's ● Feb. 10, 2026

Following the shock sacking of Brighton manager Melissa Phillips earlier this month, interim boss Mikey Harris has endured a baptism of fire at the Seagulls helm.

From BBC ● Feb. 16, 2024

Prime Minister Borne, a born technocrat rather than a born politician, is having a baptism of fire.

From BBC ● May 23, 2022

There were no human lives lost; nor any dwellings other than the hotel—for there was a clear space around that fire-trap and there had been no wind—but it was a valid baptism of fire.

From The Preacher of Cedar Mountain A Tale of the Open Country by Seton, Ernest Thompson